ADELAIDE LOONEY Loomis Chaffee GESC

My Global & Environmental Identity

Born in San Diego, California my early years were spent years surrounded by the beautiful Pacific Ocean and Southern Californian customs. However, my perspective on the world expanded when my family and I moved to Paris, France, when I was 4, and then to the Czech Republic, when I was 6. Most recently, my parents made the decision to move to Estoril, Portugal, a small beach town just 30 minutes outside of Lisbon! Growing up in these diverse Metropolitan cities I was expose to new foods, languages, and cultures. Living in these dynamic cities, I quickly noticed the interconnectedness of our globe. Although I was young, in Paris, I experienced the contrast in historic urban spaces and modern sustainability efforts. In Prague, I ventured into the city’s blend of nature and urban life. These experiences have helped me shape my understanding of what it is to be a global and environmental citizen in today’s world. My unique experiences as a global citizen allow me to bridge different perspectives on environmental issues and find common ground. I think through traveling and courses that I have taken throughout Loomis, have allowed me to broaden my understanding and outlook on environmental issues. Such as, through my Environmental Science class junior year, I learned a lot about how I as an individual contribute to climate change and just how impactful my carbon footprint is to our world.

North Carolina Outward Bound Trip!

Goals:

1. I'm hoping that I can use what I've learned during my IEP trip to enhance my learning and understanding throughout the GESC programs.

2. I want to enhance my ability to make change around campus and other communities that I am apart of.

Global & Environmental Resume

GESC-designated Courses

World History
CL French V, VI, VII
English IV: Migrant Stories
English IV: Race, Roles, and Religion
Philosophy Of Nonviolence
CL History Seminar: Immigration and Ethnicity in The United States
CL Environmental Science
Ceramics I

Elective Courses

In the Spring of 2024, I attended the LOOMUN Crisis Conference. As a delegate, I was Lafayette during the French Revolution. As Lafayette, I represented a moderate stance within the French Revolution, advocating for constitutional monarchy and aiming to balance revolutionary ideals with stability. I worked to navigate alliances, managing public services, and help to advocate for reforms that could stabilize France with or without a monarchy.

GESC Experiential Education

Over the summer of 2024, I went to the South of France to study multiculturalism and immigration in Marseille. We spent the 10 days studying the diverse neighborhoods within Marseille, and exploring the different cultures and their specialty foods! As we explored the city with our native tour guide, we learned so much not only about the current immigration situation but the rich history behind the incredibly diverse city.

If applicable ...

As well as my summer travels to France, I did a North Carolina Outward Bound trip where I backpacked and white water canoed for 9 days. We learned about the four pillars that are the foundation of NCOBS; physical fitness, craftmanship, self-reliance, and compassion. We also practiced sustainable camping skills of leaning nothing but you energy on the place where you're planning ot camp.

Learning Artifacts

GESC Coursework - CL Environmental Science

In my CL Environmental Science class last year, I did a presentation on Fast Fashion for our Spring Term Final. One of my main focuses was on how quick the turnover is in the fast fashion industry and where does the all the clothes that don't sell go to. I also researched what "green washing" is and how brands such as H&M and Zara use greenwashing to their advantage and target new lines of clothing to be more "sustainable" in the production but in reality they aren't. To me, this assignment specifically connects to the " Enhancing Understanding" section of the Alvord Center Matrix, as I have always been aware of Fast Fashion but this assignment helped me understand more about how brands will trap you into thinking that you are buying clothes stainability but in reality they are just greenwashing you. I also learned a lot more about where the clothes that no longer fit in the trends end up, such as landfills and other places.

GESC Seminars

Seminar 2: During this field trip, my understanding was enhanced by the interactive activities during our visit to the museum. I learned a lot about the experience of being an immigrant to the United States during the 20th century. It was especially fascinating to do the activity where we had to sort through different suitcases that represented different immigrant families from all over the world, it helped me get a sense of what it was like. I feel like I am very well educated on the experience of immigrants now as a lot of my courses are centered around immigration, such as my English and French classes. However, learning about immigrants in the Hartford area is new to me. I appreciated the activity where we studied primary sources. I read a source about high school dropout rates amongst the Puerto Rican population in the Hartford Public High Schools. It was really interesting and honestly, I was surprised that 90% of Puerto Rican students drop out because a popular reason for why these families immigrated is for better opportunity, and education is part of that. Empathy was a common theme throughout the field trip. Even though I had a lot of fun with the interactive activities such as the bobbins game, it gave me a new perspective on the type of work immigrants were forced to work in and how grueling it can be. When reflecting on the Alvord Center Engaged Citizenship Matrix, I was drawn to the section about questioning prevailing assumptions. I was drawn to this section because I feel like this field trip helped me debunk any existing assumptions I might have previously made subconsciously about immigrants, especially in the Hartford area.
Seminar 4: AnaAlicia and Nourish My Soul take action by promoting community-based solutions to food insecurity, sustainability, and environmental justice. Through initiatives like community gardens, youth empowerment programs, and food education, they are working to create long-term and sustainable change in the Hartford area community. One example of how they present solutions for the common good is their Cooking for a Cause initiative, which provides nutritious meals to those in need while educating the community about healthy eating and food waste reduction. Another example is their Sow & Grow program, which teaches people how to cultivate their food while teaching the importance of sustainable agriculture. This helps to address food insecurity and encourages regenerative farming practices to improve soil health. I connected the Sow & Grow to a unit we learned about in CL Environmental Science class last year about how important it is to take proper care of the soil and implement regenerative farming to produce our foods. Nourish My Soul also implements environmentally focused positive change by promoting sustainable farming techniques and reducing food waste through redistribution and composting. By prioritizing locally sources ingredients and advocating for food sovereignty, they wish to ensure that communities have control over their own food systems. Although it is hard at Loomis to participate in this because we don’t have control over where the food comes from, we can still do our part at home to practice purchasing food that comes from sustainable agriculture and regenerative farming. While thinking about the Matrix, I personally feel that this enhanced my understanding as I had learned about this briefly last year in class, but through this seminar, learning about an organization like Nourish My Soul that is so close to Loomis and how this affects my food, really caught my attention.
Seminar 5: After attending the Shultz Fellowship open Discussion, each member made very insightful comments and offered new perspectives on how the political world has a major influence on our current environment. One of the points that stood out to me was about climate refugees. A question that was brought up was if the Trump administration would be more lenient in accepting Climate Refugees in the next 4 years. Multiple people replied with no, they explained that due to the current state of our immigration laws and Trump's plans to deport all illegal immigrants in the U.S., there would be no possible way President Trump would allow for climate refugees into our country. Another point that stood out to me was about how, since we switch Presidencies every 4 years and each administration is different, even if new policies are put into place for the next four years, they can easily be taken away with the next President. So, most solutions are not feasible and are a waste of money. One of the examples that was used for this was Offshore Wind Turbines. Another point that connected to this was the implementation of tariffs and how this would set back most companies from building new turbines or other products like that, because the parts to build them could be imported from other countries and therefore would cost a lot. This would make our current administration even less inclined to implement more measures. When deciding between the 3 options for our 5th seminar, I was inspired to seek knowledge in this topic and learn more about how our current political state affects our Earth. Something that was also brought up was how the countries that are usually emitting the most C02 into our atmosphere are the ones who suffer the least, and vice versa. This was something that I had already learned about in my Environmental Science class, but this just enhanced my understanding with more depth and examples.

GESC Electives

This photo was taken on July 2nd, in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Asheville, North Carolina. I did a 9-day backpacking and white-water canoeing course with Outward Bound. I went on this trip to try something new and appreciate nature more. Through this trip, I learned a lot about myself and how I can push myself to try new things, this is where I developed a lot of new skills.

GESC Experiential Education

This photo was taken during our tour of Marseille and represents the famous lavender soap shopscommonly found in the South of France. We visited Aix-en-Provence where we actually went to a lavender farm and made our own lavender soaps with fun designs on them!

This photo was taken at the Calanques, which is a famous hike to these beautiful white rocks and blue waters! We did the hike and then had a nice little picnic down at the rocky beaches before going swimming! It was such a beautiful place and the group really bonded during the hike down and up.

This photo was taken at the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations, we walked through the exhibit and I thought this was a super neat shot as it represented well the rich history of the multiculturalism of Marseille, in particular the representation of North Africans countries such as Algeria, Morrocco, and Tunisia.

This photo is of the Cathédrale La Major, which we quickly went into. We walked into the Cathedral and observed all of the beautiful carvings and glass art, we also went to the back of the alter where there were some scenes from the nativity and it was super interesting and beautiful.

Capstone Project

Connecticut River ArcGis

Project rationale

Why is this project important to you/the community? This project is important to me because it allows me to see the impact of my research and storytelling, helping others connect with the history and environment of the Connecticut River. It’s also valuable to the community because it raises awareness about the river’s cultural and ecological significance, educating people on its past and encouraging a sense of responsibility for its future.

Target Audience

Who specifically should use/interact with/engage with your project? This project is designed for people who are interested in the Connecticut River, including students, educators, and members of the River Schools Collaborative. It’s also for anyone who cares about local history, Indigenous heritage, and environmental conservation. By engaging with this project, they can deepen their understanding of the river’s importance and be inspired to protect and preserve it for future generations.

Project Process

What steps did you take to pursue/complete your project? What challenges did you face along the way? How did you overcome those challenges? Nina and I met regularly to collaborate on our project, dedicating a lot of time to learning and improving our ArcGIS skills. We began by researching the Connecticut River and planning how to map out its key features and stories. A major challenge we faced was the unreliability of ArcGIS—our work occasionally didn’t save, and we often struggled to figure out how to use certain tools. To overcome these setbacks, we problem-solved together, watched tutorials, and asked for help when needed. Despite the frustrations, we stayed committed and spent many hours refining the project. Through trial and error, we not only improved our technical skills but also deepened our understanding of the river and its significance. The process taught us resilience, collaboration, and the importance of adapting when things don’t go as planned.

Project Reflection (To be written upon conclusion of your Capstone, 250-300 words)

How do you feel about your final product and its impact? How does your project connect to the Alvord Center Matrix? How did this project help you grow as a global and environmental scholar? How do you envision your project being used in the future?

I am very proud of my Capstone and what Nina and I were able to accomplish. Our final product reflects both our commitment to learning and our growth throughout the process. This project strongly connects to the Develop Skills and Seek Knowledge pillars of the Alvord Center Matrix. We pushed ourselves to learn how to use ArcGIS and to better understand the Indigenous communities and environmental history of the Connecticut River. By researching and mapping the river’s cultural and ecological significance, I gained a deeper awareness of how place, people, and environment are interconnected. This project helped me grow as a global and environmental scholar by encouraging me to think critically about local histories and their broader global contexts. I hope our work can serve as a resource for the Connecticut River Schools Collaborative, offering a foundation for future students and educators to build on and explore further.

GESC Reflection (150-300 words)

A response to your statement of intent (yes, from when you enrolled in the GESC!), and how you believe you have grown as a global and environmental scholar at Loomis Chaffee.

Statement of Intent: As I am passionate about understanding the world, my goals and inspirations align closely with the mission of the Alvord Center for Global & Environmental Studies. My aim is to dive deeper into the global and environmental issues, issuing a deeper understanding that exceeds the boundaries and cultivates a sense of global citizenship. Pursuing the Global & Environmental Studies Certificate offers me a precise pathway to achieve my goals and aspirations. I am drawn to the idea of undertaking experiential learning opportunities that GESC offers students, such as group work, fieldwork, and internships. I am excited about the chance to participate in something that could further bring the community’s global awareness and environmental sustainability. The idea of being recognized with the GESC upon commencement showcases my determination, dedication, and effort invested in understanding global and environmental issues. Overall, my goal within the GESC program is to gain a more profound understanding of global issues, practical skills, and environmental issues that contribute positively to close communities and to the world. If I were to be granted the opportunity to participate in the GESC program, I am confident in my ability to pursue my goals and aspirations and contribute to the Loomis community and other communities outside of the island.

Response to Statement of Intent: Over the course of my time at Loomis Chaffee, I have grown significantly as a global and environmental scholar through both academic exploration and many hands-on experiences. Being part of the Global & Environmental Studies Certificate program has allowed me to better understand the world around me and the connections between global systems, cultures, and environments. Through my work with the Alvord Center, I’ve had the opportunity to explore global and environmental issues in ways that felt meaningful and relevant. Completing my GESC capstone allowed me to dive into research that was compelling to me and enhanced my understanding of how I can contribute, both environmentally and as a global citizen. I found that applying what I learned in seminars to real-world topics helped me connect the dots between local action and broader impact. Being part of the GESC program helped shift my mindset. Instead of just learning about our world, I’ve learned how I can play a role in shifting our environment and becoming a better global citizen. I’ve come away from the experience with a greater sense of responsibility, a stronger understanding of how our world and systems work, and a clearer sense of how I can continue to learn and contribute as a global citizen